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Some who managed to get hold of a console in the early rush following their release in the last two weeks are trying to cash in on the angst of parents, desperate not to disappoint their children.

The Xbox One console, which comes with the Fifa 14 or Forza Motorsport game, was being advertised on eBay today with a ‘buy now’ price of up to £699 – a mark-up of £270 or 63per cent.

Similarly, one eBay seller was trying to get as much as £850 for the latest PS4 console, which would be a mark-up of £501 or 143 per cent.

The Xbox One, which comes with the Fifa 14 or Forza Motorsport game, console was being advertised on eBay yesterday with a 'buy now' price of up to £699 - a mark-up of £270 or 63per cent

Such is the demand that criminals have set up a number of rogue retail sites that promise to sell the consoles, but then disappear once money has been transferred in to their accounts.

The firm NetNames, which specialises in protecting brand names, has found almost 100,000 online scams linked to the Xbox One and PS4 consoles.

The firm’s product director, Haydn Simpson, said: ‘Consumers must remain wary of "too good to be true offers" for the must-have festive gifts.’

Amazon’s message to customers about the two consoles reads: ‘Temporarily out of stock’. On the PS4, it adds: ‘Customers who pre-order this console from November 14 will receive their consoles after Christmas.’

One eBay seller was trying to get as much as £850 for the latest PS4 console, which would be a mark-up of £501 or 143per cent. Criminals have even set up a number of rogue retail sites that promise to sell the consoles, but then disappear once money has been transferred in to their accounts

Similarly, the Xbox One product page has been updated to say the console will not be in stock until January 7.

The UK marketing director for Xbox, Harvey Eagle, said: ‘Everyone knows demand for Xbox One is through the roof, we are doing everything we can to make sure our fans have an Xbox One.’

However, Yusuf Mehdi, the corporate vice president of strategy and marketing for Xbox, admitted the console has sold out in retailers around the world.

‘Demand is far exceeding supply in the 13 countries we’ve launched and we are sold out at retailers around the world,’ he said.

The UK marketing director for Xbox, Harvey Eagle, said: 'Everyone knows demand for Xbox One is through the roof, we are doing everything we can to make sure our fans have an Xbox One.' Here, one lucky customer cuddles his console on the day it went on sale in the U.S.

‘We are humbled and gratified by the overwhelming response from our fans to the launch of Xbox One. Eleven days in we are seeing record breaking sales and are selling every Xbox One we can make.

The GAME chain said it is giving priority to customers who pre-ordered the consoles, but said it hoped to get more stock before Christmas to supply others.

Category director, Charlotte Knight, said: ‘Demand is incredible and our pre-order customers are our number one priority. With that in mind, we are still confident that we will be able to make more Xbox One and PlayStation 4 stock available pre-Christmas for non pre-order customers too. If we can, we will.’

Last night, it was revealed that O2 stores have been given a consignment of Xbox consoles, which should go on sale tomorrow.

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Xbox One and Playstation 4 have sold out in the UK - and major suppliers won't be able to deliver the goods until AFTER Christmas